>> john boehner, speaker of the house, republican, told hairry reid go --. that is a direct quote. and by the way, that's why we can't do the show in louisiana. i don't know. and then harry reid said i'm sorry. what'd you say? john boehner said, you heard me. go --. i'm telling you ladies and gentlemen if i had a nickel for every time someone said that to me i could pay off the national debt. i could. >> members of the 113th congress were sworn in at the capitol after which they were like, well. that's enough work for the year. that was hard. >> he might not be that far off judging what we've seen this year. >> probably not. >> yeah. thank you so much for starting your morning with us. we have much more ahead on "cnn

saturday morning" which starts right now. and good morning everyone. i'm randi kaye. >> i'm victor blackwell. 7:00 on the east coast. 4:00 out west. thanks for starting your morning with us. >> we start this morning with the expected next step in president obama's big cabinet shakeup. sources tell cnn that the president is likely to nominate republican chuck hagel as defense secretary next week. hagel is a former senator from nebraska who retired in 2009. the president explained why he is behind hagel on "meet the press." >> disqualify him? >> not that i see. i served with chuck hagel. i know him. he is a patriot. he is somebody who has done extraordinary work both in the united states senate, somebody who served this country with valor in vietnam. this is somebody who is currently serving on my intelligence advisory board and doing an outstanding job.

so i haven't made a decision on this. with respect to the particular comment you quoted he apologized for it. >> the president there is referring to anti-gay remarks hagel made in the past, remarks that this ad in the "new york times" points out. the ad from the log cabin republicans also mentions other criticisms of hagel. he has opposed sanctions against iran and some say he has been less than emphatic about his support for israel. the economy is ending 2012 on the positive side. december's jobs report is out and is showing more than 1.8 million jobs were added last year. 155,000 of those jobs were added last month. while unemployment remained flat at 7.8%. we solved the fiscal cliff. now the capitol hill confrontations over the debt ceiling are expected to get as intense if not worse. the debt ceiling is the legal limit on the nation's borrowing. in his weekly address the president says he is taking a hard line on the issue. >> one thing i will not compromise over is whether or

not congress should pay the tab for a bill they've already racked up. if congress refuses to give the united states the ability to pay its bills on time the consequences for the entire global economy could be catastrophic. last time congress threatened this course of action our entire economy suffered for it. our families and our businesses cannot afford that dangerous game again. as you would expect, republicans are also drawing a line despite approving the fiscal cliff compromise. gop lawmakers say it was missing something monumental, long-term spending cuts. here is a clip of their weekly address. >> the simple truth is that we are in this fiscal mess because washington takes too much of your money and then wastes it. that's the real problem. it needs a real solution. we have to make sure washington is accountable for every tax dollar it spends. we have to make sure your money is spent efficiently and

effectively. veipresident hugo chavez is quote, fighting for his health right now. despite rumors he won't be able to inaugurated next week the vice president says his running mate can always take the oath at a later time. there is also some thought the u.s. may be trying to influence a transition from power although the state department says that any future political change has to be decided by venezuelans. >> we do not believe there is a made in america solution for venezuela's transition. only venezuelans can make that decision. that is the message we are giving to venezuelans of all stripes that we want to see any transition be democratic, constitutional, open, transparent, legal within venezuela and that it has to be decided by venezuelans. new details are emerging about the fatal gang rape of a 23-year-old medical student in new delhi, a horrific crime that's led to widespread

protests in india. the victim's male friend who was also attacked is speaking out for the first time about the attack. here is what he told reuters. >> translator: from where we boarded the bus, they took us around for two, two and a half hours across overpasses, through all of delhi. then they dropped us below an overpass. then they tried to run over us. we had no clothes. we waited there hoping someone would help us. i tried to flag down vehicles. taxies would slow down, take a look at us, and move on. we got no help for nearly 20 or 25 minutes. >> so far five men have been charged with murder, rape, and kidnapping in this case. they appear in court on monday. in the u.s. another rape case is making headlines. in steubenville, ohio two high school football players are accused of raping a classmate at a party earlier this year and the social media response has taken really a life of its own. hacker activist group anonymous

has released information on those they believe are involved in the assault. they've even planned a rally at the steubenville courthouse today, their second this week. but when it comes to anonymous releasing information to the public the county sheriff made his outrage clear. >> now listen. anonymous, whoever is out there, you can say whatever you want to say about me but when you start attacking children and putting their names out where everybody can see it and their addresses then i'm coming after you. anonymous, you're watching this. i'm coming after you. >> we will have more on this story all morning long including a live report from steubenville in our next hour. newtown, connect cut the site of last month's tragic school shooting had a special visitor yesterday. former congresswoman gabby giffords, a victim of gun violence herself. she met with the local leaders discussing gun control and of course mental health issues. the congresswoman retired last year to focus on her recovery.

she still has some trouble walking though. giffords was one of 19 people shot in a political rally in arizona in 2010. take a look at this. this is the president as he learns about that tragic shooting in newtown. he's called the death of the 20 children and six adults, quote, the worst day of his presidency. the photo was taken by white house photographer pete soeza and released thursday as part of his year end photographs on flicker. we have much more ahead this hour. >> here is a look at what's coming up. partisan, unpopular, ineffective. just some of the words used to describe congress. all morning long we'll go in focus on whether the house of representatives is more like a house of cards. be brave. fight hard. but save a bullet for yourself. that's what one american was taught when he found himself in the middle of the syrian civil

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i tuned it all out. with unitedhealthcare, i get information that matters... my individual health profile. not random statistics. they even reward me for addressing my health risks. so i'm doing fine... but she's still going to give me a heart attack. we're more than 78,000 people looking out for more than 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare. we don't let frequent heartburn come between us and what we love. so if you're one of them people who gets heartburn and then treats day after day... block the acid with prilosec otc and don't get heartburn in the first place! [ male announcer ] one pill each morning. 24 hours. zero heartburn. good morning everyone. good morning, washington. look at the beautiful shot of the capitol building.

thank you so much for starting your morning with us. >> speaking of the capitol it was like a warm family living room in d.c. yesterday as senators took the oath of office for the 113th congress on thursday. some senators like kirsten gillibrand of new york held their children as they raised their hand in front of vice president joe biden. and that kid wants to fix mommy's hair. her son wasn't making things easy as you can see here. at one point biden picked up the 4-year-old daughter of ted cruz the new senator from texas. she is a bit overwhelmed by the ceremony. so it's official as you just saw. the 113th congress is under way. there's a lot to get done inside a very fragile house and that is our focus today. an uphill battle for a house called unproductive, unpopular, and uncooperative just to name a few adjectives. there are 84 new faces in the house. joining me now is one of them. representative mark vese. good morning, congressman. how are you? >> good morning, randi. doing great today.

>> glad you're with us this morning. are you settling into the new job? finding your way around washington okay? >> yeah. finding my way around washington okay. it was a great day for swearing in. my son and my wife and my family all had a great time. now we're ready to get to work. >> glad you're ready to get to work. what are your thoughts on joining a congress nah narrowly avoided a fiscal cliff after a lengthy public friction and a lot of bickering between republicans and democrats? >> i thought it was very unfortunate it took that long to address something that was very serious. i think when you look at the economy and the things that are -- and the way the economy is improving, the fact that we could have gone into a fiscal cliff and we came that close i thought was unfortunate. but it's my hope that the congress will hear from the american public, people will go back to their districts for this next week while we're off and constituents will tell them, hey, we sent you guys up there

to do the right thing. stop all the partisan bickering and let's get to work for the country. >> if you had been in the 112th congress how would you have voted on the bill to avoid the fiscal cliff? >> i would have absolutely voted yes. i would have been unhesitant to vote yes. it was, again, the right thing to do. you look at the jobs report that came out today that showed that construction jobs for the first time are showing an uptick. you look at the real estate market and what is going on with existing home sales. the economy is going in the right direction. the president has done a great job to get things back ontrack. but we need to keep moving forward in that direction and so i would have voted yes. >> you'll be a busy man in a busy congress certainly with a lot of big issues ahead of you. you have the federal deficit, spending cuts, debt ceiling. if the last congress had so many challenges producing a bill to avoid the fiscal cliff do you think this congress will be more productive and if so why?

>> you know, i think that remains to be seen. i think that, again, that congressmen need to hear from their constituents and people need to know that, hey, we sent you guys up there to get to work. we mean business. stop all of the partisan bickering. of course, republicans and democrats are always going to have differences on issues. but things of this nature that could cause economic catastrophe, those sorts of things, we should be able to work a lot easier on and that's why i'm up here. i want to work with my republican colleagues. i've reached out to all of my republican colleagues in the north texas area to let them know i want to work with them and i will continue to reach across the aisle, all across the congress working with republicans because i know that it is very important that we do a better job of working together. >> i want to ask you about a comment made by the number two

republican senator john cornyn of texas. he faulted the president for the brinksmanship as he called it but he also suggested it may be necessary to shut down the government in fact in order to secure this long-term fiscal well being. what are your thoughts on that? >> i think that would be a disaster particularly for our state of texas where our economy continues to do a little bit better than maybe the rest of the country. and i don't think -- i think it would be terrible for the country so i hope mr. cornyn or senator cornyn would definitely rethink that. but i think that is the sort of thing we need to get away from in washington, d.c. >> yeah. certainly this new congress has more diversity than we've ever seen before. >> yes. >> record number of latinos in the house, record number of women in the senate. what does this tell you about where we are in the country and do you think it'll make a difference in whether the president will be able to get his agenda done? >> yeah.

absolutely. the new congress is absolutely amazing. when you look at the number of latinos, you look at the number of women i believe at new hampshire, the entire congressional delegation in new hampshire consists of women. absolutely the new congress is very diverse and i hope that that signals some change. but i think even with the diversity again that the democrats, and we mainly, when you talk about the diversity, that is within the democratic contest. i believe the new democrats that are here, that we want to do what's right for the country. we're proud of our diversity but we all love our country and we want to get things back ontrack. >> congressman marc veasey, a pleasure to speak with you this morning. thank you. >> thank you, randi. next hour at 8:15 we'll go to the other side of the aisle and talk to the republican congressional freshman for his take on inheriting last year's congressional leftovers. this is a dramatic story of

survival. look at this. two teenagers in arizona trapped on a frozen lake. all they had to hang on to is that tree. you're watching cnn saturday morning. the capital one cash rewards card gives you 1% cash back on all purchases, plus a 50% annual bonus. and everyone but her likes 50% more cash, but i have an idea. do you want a princess dress? yes. cupcakes? yes. do you want an etch-a-sketch? yes! do you want 50% more cash? no. you got talent. [ male announcer ] the capital one cash rewards card gives you 1% cash back on every purchase plus a 50% annual bonus on the cash you earn. it's the card for people who like more cash. what's in your wallet? i usually say that. but don't just listen to me. listen to these happy progressive customers. i plugged in snapshot, and 30 days later, i was saving big on car insurance. with snapshot, i knew what i could save before i switched to progressive. the better i drive, the more i save. i wish our company had something this cool.

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. 20 minutes after the hour. the only thing between these teenagers in arizona and the bottom of the icy lake was that dead tree. they hung on for four hours in 20-degree weather after the ice around them started to crack. firefighters who saw the boat

came to the rescue. later the boys thanked the firefighters and promised not to explore any more frozen lakes. >> dear firefighters, thank you so much for helping me and my friend be able to get back safely to the ground. we are very sorry about making you all come out and do this. we shouldn't have walked on the ice in the first place. >> i regret my choices deep lane thank all for sacrificing so much for saving us. >> he made a call to help on his cell phone. having lived in minnesota for seven years i've seen so many stories like this. people walk out on the frozen lakes and it is always up to these incredibly brave guys to get out there and rescue them. you always think the ice is thick enough. but every year they publish it. don't go out there until it's this thick. nobody listens. >> the little foot tap test. yeah we're good. >> i remember the first time i walked on a frozen lake. it was pretty scary. >> four hours on that tree. >> that is pretty scary.

well, the coast line of alaska had a rude wakeup call early this morning. a 7.5 magnitude earthquake hit off the coast of alaska around 4:00 a am eastern time. >> officials sent out a tsunami warning shortly after the quake but it's now been canceled and no damage is reported. now to florida where a woman dove through a glass window to escape her burning home after a plane crashed into it. all three people aboard that small plane died in the crash. the pilot reported mechanical problems, was trying to make an emergency landing at an airport a mile away. he said the plane was shaking uncontrollably when it crashed. the woman who lived in the house is expected to be okay. >> north carolina is fighting to have the words choose life on some of its license plates. the state is appealing a court ruling that said the plates violated the first amendment because there is no alternative for the people who support abortion rights. reports say the money from selling the plates would support some crisis pregnancy centers. the choose life campaign argues 29 other states already have

similar plates. you may hear a lot of stories in the news about people getting sick, even dying after eating tainted food. it often results in massive recalls of fruits, veggies, packaged foods. now the fda is making a change to try and stop that. here is cnn's athena jones with more. >> reporter: listeria in cantaloupes, salmonella in peanut butter, e-coli in lettuce. food borne illnesses strike one in six americans every year according to the centers for disease control. nearly 130,000 of them end up in the hospital and some 3,000 die. new rules proposed are aimed at changing that, being applauded by food safety advocates. >> this is a really important step to developing food safety standards that would prevent contamination in food whether being produced in a food factory or produced on the farm. >> reporter: the rules would require many domestic and foreign producers of food to be sold in the u.s. to develop plans to prevent their foods from causing food borne illnesses and to correct any

problems that do arise. the rules also set standards for the safe production and harvesting of fruits and vegetables making sure workers wash their hands for example. it would focus on high risk areas like agricultural water, equipment, and keeping dmesty kated and wild animals out of fields. >> what these rules are going to look at are microbial hazards, so the pathogens that cause people to get sick when their food is contaminated. things like e-coli, listeria, salmonella, those types of food borne illnesses. >> reporter: the goal is to make it easier for producers to track down the cause of problems should they occur and help the fda act more quickly to shut them down. the agency says these rules build on existing voluntary industry guidelines. they won't be final until sometime after the four-month period allowed for public comment. the big issue here, food advocates say, is making sure the fda has enough resources to be able to enforce these rules once they become final. that means money for things like inspectors. athena jones, cnn, washington.

an american film maker has returned from syria where he witnessed the tragedy of war and found out why rebels say they always keep one last bullet. matthew van dyke joins us next.

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